back to article Central gov spent £6.3bn on IT. Nearly half handed to just 3 suppliers

Central government splashed £6.3bn with IT suppliers for the year 2014/15 – with 42 per cent going to just three suppliers, according to government data shared with The Register. Sixty-five per cent of the total figure was hoovered up by 10 suppliers, with HP coming top at £1.2bn, followed by Capgemini at £861m, and BT at £ …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Over £17million per day - that is one expensive gravy train.

  2. Hans Neeson-Bumpsadese Silver badge

    where are....

    C(r)apita? I thought that where there are big government contracts they are never far away.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: where are....

      Capita don't really play in this IT market. They're more about selling people for process outsourcing (service desks, cleaners, drivers etc.) or short-term gap-fillers (locum medics, for example). They tend not to get involved in change project delivery, which is where the serious money is in government IT.

  3. danjones_kable

    Paradigm

    Hi Kat. Good article. FYI, Paradigm is 100% owned by Airbus and was established in 2003 to operate communications satellites and maintain the ground support element of the Skynet 5 PFI contract

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Accountability...they've heard of it.

    It's only taxpayer's money after all.

  5. Dave 15

    As per usual...

    So most of the money goes to the big boys... nothing new in that, all to do with back scratching I guess.

    That the big boys are mainly foreign, almost exclusively American is another blow to the British economy.

    Every pound taken from tax payers and sent abroad is another pound NOT spent here. By not spending here the reverse of Keynes happens... less demand, less jobs, less jobs to less money to less demand to less jobs... oh yes PRECISELY what we have seen in the UK for the last 20 years since Thatchers cornershop mentality was persuaded it was a good idea...

    Imagine if all those Merc council vans and police wagons were LDV, or the Renault army lorries were Bedford, or the BMW police cars were Rover, or the Merc bin lorries were ERF... or the NHS computer system had been programmed here, or the census carried out by British people working for a British company, or the engines in the new aircraft carriers were British, or if British steel had been used to construct them.... ALL your neighbours would be working and paying tax, your tax bill would be one hell of a lot lower.

    BUT the poor little souls in government departments wouldn't have to fly first class and stay in 5* hotels while attending 'business meetings' in various warm and pleasant parts of the globe, perhaps they would only make it as far as Birmingham.... ah

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: As per usual...

      "almost exclusively American"

      Capgemini, Steria and Atos are French, Fujitsu are Japanese and CGI are Canadian.

  6. Hans Neeson-Bumpsadese Silver badge

    going overseas

    Every pound taken from tax payers and sent abroad is another pound NOT spent here

    I don't think that's entirely true. In cases where contracts are let to overseas companies, the services are delivered in the UK, by UK employees of said company (often a separate UK subsidiary), who live, pay taxes and spend money in the UK.

    True, some money goes overseas, but don't underestimate just how much remains within these shores.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: going overseas

      Within a £350 day rate for an Engineer you can guarantee 50% at least is going straight to Silicon Valley. If they can persuade the Govt Dept to let them work offshore it's probably more like 80%

    2. Dave 15

      Re: going overseas

      The NHS computer system was let to a large company who employed Indian engineers in India.... very very very little of those billions ever found the route back to Britain.

      The tax system was similarly done entirely abroad.

      Two examples in a very long list. There are to all intents and purposes NO pieces of work that find their way back to the UK. Same in other industries as well. As I say, no fancy business trips and so on if you buy from Birmingham

      1. Anonymous Curd

        Re: going overseas

        "The tax system was similarly done entirely abroad."

        Telford might be a pretty unusual place, but describing it as "entirely abroad" is stretching it, given it's all of 30 miles from, er... Birmingham.

      2. Miss Lincolnshire

        Re: going overseas

        "The tax system was similarly done entirely abroad."

        I was a programmer on COP, CODA, BROCS, CT Pay & File and CESA. Subsequently managed the installation of servers and networks in Boyd 1 and 2. I didn't get out of Telford Town Centre for any of it.

  7. ecofeco Silver badge

    Nice fact

    Now how about an article on how much of it was wasted on failed projects? You know, context.

    1. Miss Lincolnshire

      Re: Nice fact

      None of the above were failed. All delivered on budget, time and scope. You really do need to look elsewhere for your muck.

      You shouldn't just measure everyone else by your own track record of failure.

    2. Matt Bryant Silver badge
      Facepalm

      Re: ecofeco Re: Nice fact

      "Now how about an article on how much of it was wasted on failed projects? You know, context.". Well, first you would have to set the context. For a start, the rate of project failure in IT outside of government is pretty high, and that is usually a lot smaller and less challenging projects. Maybe comparing the rate of failure against other leading European countries would be a good comparison.

  8. Hans 1
    Unhappy

    WOW, YEAHHHHHHHHHH, central gov has gotten rid of MS software!!!!! No wait, why are they not on the list? Hiding behind HP, maybe ?

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So when will the big Departments finally find the will and strength to break up the old mega deals, stop extending old, often unfit contracts, and truly open the market to competition and SME involvement? They are like beaten wives going back to their abusive husband... Change of ownership (or big mergers) often give them contractual break opportunities - time to think about non-delivering arrangements at the moment for CSC and HPE customers!?

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So when will the big Departments finally find the will and strenght to break up the old mega deals, stop extending old, often unfit contracts, and truly open the market to competition and SME involvement? They are like beaten wives going back to their abusive husband... Change of ownership (or big mergers) often give them contractual break opportunities - time to think about non-delivering arrangements at the moment for CSC and HPE customers!?

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